Pokémon Go Master Premier Classic: Best Pokémon

The premier Pokémon for this classic competition

Contents

1. Pokémon Go Master Premier Classic: Best Leads
2. Pokémon Go Master Premier Classic: Best Safe Switches
3. Pokémon Go Master Premier Classic: Best Closers
4. Pokémon Go Master Premier Classic: Best Attackers

Joining the Master League in Pokémon Go from January 5, 2023, at 1pm PT to January 12, 2023, at the same time will be the Master Premier Classic.

Just like the Master League, the Master Premier Classic comes without a competition points (CP) limit, which means you can use all the high level Pokémon you want. There are a few more exceptions to this rule, though, so hold off on building your team for a second: You’re not allowed to use Legendary or Mythical Pokémon, and Ultra Beasts are also not eligible. You also may not use any Pokémon that have been powered up with Candy XL.

So many rules, huh? Don’t worry, we’ve got a list of the best Pokémon for Master Premier Classic right here to help get you started with building a strong team. The ranking is based on statistics and simulations provided by PvPoke.com.

Pokémon Go Master Premier Classic: Best Leads

These Pokémon aggressively apply pressure on your opponent right from the start of a duel and can survive even tough battles for a long time – they are perfect to open a match up, enabling you to score an early knockout or set up a strong counter play.

1. Dragonite^(S) (Dragon Breath, Dragon Claw, Superpower)
2. Florges (Fairy Wind, Disarming Voice, Moonblast)
3. Gyarados^(S) (Dragon Breath, Aqua Tail, Crunch)
4. Sneasler (Shadow Claw, Close Combat, X-Scissor)
5. Magnezone^(S) (Spark, Wild Charge, Mirror Shot)
6. Snorlax^(S) (Lick, Body Slam, Superpower)
7. Avalugg (Ice Fang, Avalanche, Body Slam)
8. Kommo-o (Dragon Tail, Close Combat, Dragon Claw)
9. Togekiss (Charm, Ancient Power, Flamethrower)
10. Shadow Electivire (Thunder Shock, Ice Punch, Wild Charge)

Pokémon marked with (S) perform almost equally in their regular and Shadow forms.

Pokémon Go Master Premier Classic: Best Safe Switches

These Pokémon serve as switch options for your lead – should the opening pairing be to your disadvantage, switch in one of these monsters instead to preserve your lead Pokémon for later. According to this purpose, these are primarily Pokémon that counter some of the most popular leads or are strong leads themselves.

1. Gyarados^(S) (Dragon Breath, Aqua Tail, Crunch)
2. Shadow Snorlax (Lick, Body Slam, Superpower)
3. Mamoswine^(S) (Powder Snow, Avalanche, High Horsepower)
4. Ursaluna^(S) (Tackle, Thunder Punch, High Horsepower)
5. Shadow Charizard (Wing Attack, Blast Burn, Dragon Claw)
6. Roserade (Poison Jab, Weather Ball (Fire), Leaf Storm)
7. Florges (Fairy Wind, Disarming Voice, Moonblast)
8. Sneasler (Shadow Claw, Close Combat, X-Scissor)
9. Avalugg (Ice Fang, Avalanche, Body Slam)
10. Shadow Magmortar (Karate Chop, Fire Punch, Thunderbolt)

Pokémon Go Master Premier Classic: Best Closers

These Pokémon are especially strong when there are no shields left in play on either side – they are incredibly tough themselves or end battles with a single hit of their powerful charge attacks.

1. Garchomp (Mud Shot, Earth Power, Outrage)
2. Ursaluna (Tackle, Thunder Punch, High Horsepower)
3. Metagross (Bullet Punch, Meteor Mash, Earthquake)
4. Mamoswine^(S) (Powder Snow, Avalanche, High Horsepower)
5. Dragonite^(S) (Dragon Breath, Dragon Claw, Superpower)
6. Conkeldurr (Counter, Dynamic Punch, Stone Edge)
7. Florges (Fairy Wind, Disarming Voice, Moonblast)
8. Chesnaught (Vine Whip, Frenzy Plant, Superpower)
9. Shadow Snorlax (Lick, Body Slam, Superpower)
10. Shadow Ursaluna (Tackle, Thunder Punch, High Horsepower)

Pokémon Go Master Premier Classic: Best Attackers

These Pokémon perform best when fighting a trainer who still has shields, while you no longer have shields yourself – they have the ideal combination of resistances and strong fast attacks to compensate for this disadvantage. For this reason, you rarely see Shadow forms in this category – they take more damage than their regular counterparts, which is very risky at this stage of a match.

1. Florges (Fairy Wind, Disarming Voice, Moonblast)
2. Togekiss (Charm, Ancient Power, Flamethrower)
3. Primarina (Charm, Moonblast, Psychic)
4. Dragonite (Dragon Breath, Dragon Claw, Superpower)
5. Chesnaught (Vine Whip, Frenzy Plant, Superpower)
6. Snorlax (Lick, Body Slam, Superpower)
7. Sylveon (Charm, Moonblast, Psyshock)
8. Shadow Gardevoir (Charm, Synchronoise, Shadow Ball)
9. Magnezone (Spark, Wild Charge, Mirror Shot)
10. Avalugg (Ice Fang, Avalanche, Body Slam)

Chesnaught profits from gaining Frenzy Plant in January 2023’s Community Day, shooting up the rankings. Meanwhile, the season’s nerf to Charm had little effect on all the strong Fairy-type attacks dominating no-shield scenarios. Still, if you don’t have a lot of Legendary Pokémon and don’t want to grind for Candy XL, Master Premier Classic is probably a more entertaining choice for you than regular Master League.

Apart from GO Battle League, you should check out this month’s Raids, Field Research, and Spotlight Hours to not miss anything going on in the mobile game.